Pardew's side picked up their first league victory at Old Trafford since 1972 on Saturday thanks to a second-half Yohan Cabaye strike from inside the area.
Cabaye's second goal of the season condemned champions Manchester United to consecutive defeats at home in the Premier League for the first time since 2002, although Pardew hopes his players will be given the credit they deserve for masterminding the shock result rather than the spotlight being on David Moyes' struggles.
"It's one of the top moments in my time here, it's been 41 years we've been waiting (to beat Manchester United at Old Trafford)," he told BT Sport.
"It was a magnificent performance. We won't get the headlines because of poor old United and David, but we deserve the headlines because we were magnificent.
"We really kept the ball well and made it difficult (for Manchester United). It's been a great day for us and our fans."
Pardew reserved special praise for substitute Hatem Ben Arfa, but stated that the work-rate of his side was impressive as Newcastle bounced back from a 3-0 defeat at Swansea City on Wednesday.
"I felt we had a good control of the game, they didn't have too many moments," he continued.
"The slip-up at Swansea was disappointing and maybe I should take some of the blame.
"The four victories we had were a little bit more direct and I asked us to play differently. We've won with both styles.
"I thought Hatem Ben Arfa changed the game off the bench and he now knows the sort of work rate you need in this team."
